it's been so long since i've had to come up with any sort of non-school related username that i was a bit paralyzed when blogger asked me for one right away. "don't you want my 'N' number first? how about my date of birth? expected date of graduation?" i wanted to ask.
from what i recall from my old days of AIM and other internet-related activities, these things are supposed to be equal parts witty and poignant, with a possible touch of irony or song-lyric reference. either that, or they are cryptic and alienating, leading readers (me) to believe they must have missed out on some prior conversation/inside joke/ cultural reference. my brilliant plan to evade all of this quickly unravelled when blogger informed me that "talisa" was already taken, and that "talisa-talisa" would be my next best option. as hard as i tried, i couldn't see myself passing off "talisa-talisa" as witty, poignant, cryptic, or alienating, and i haven't heard my name in any songs lately, either.
i ended up choosing rocketships-jellyfish because i've been doodling a lot of both of them in my journal lately (they are pretty easy to draw, and can be made in multiple colors, sizes, and variations, which is convenient when i am carrying several colors of pens and lack the creativity/skill to come up with anything else). they also allow for some pretty nice accompanying doodles: moon, stars, planets, fish, seaweed, underwater castles.... what's more, they are similar in their forms in that the rockets i draw have three exhaust tubes coming out from them, and the jellyfish i draw have three tentacles. this sort of versatility and symmetry is all very convenient, but the icing on the cake is that "rocketships, jellyfish" sort of rhymes, and rolls off the tongue rather nicely.
i could come up with something about how rocketships and jellyfish imply, simultaneously, a sense of ethereal mystery and earthly wonder. how they suggest a longing for what we can't have--the sky and the ocean instead of the land we live on. the beauty of a pitch black water and a pitch black galaxy, the idea of the unknown in both sea and space. ghostly transluscent creatures contrasted with cold metallic vessels. but really, it's all about the aesthetics. both words have a nice assortment of vowel and consonant sounds. also, both words each consist of two words, and the words that make up each of the words would mean completely different things if they weren't next to each other. the rhyme is there, but it's just a little off (sh-i, i-sh), which i like. i also like how the "k" in rocket sort of cuts into "jellyfish," which sounds kind of gelatinous and squishy on its own. i also especially like r and j, pretty solid letters if you ask me. isn't language wonderful?
overall, i guess both explanations are pretty lame and pretentious. i'm just glad i haven't been drawing oranges-- nothing rhymes with that.
*side note: while the inspiration for the title of my internet-journal came from my real journal, that will probably be the only time that those two realms will intersect. being that the internet is public, and my thoughts, emotions, and life are not, the function of this blog will be solely for sharing and updating. if you want the juicy stuff you'll have to call. or steal my journal.
